Some Church Folk Ask: 'What Would Jesus Brew?'

Others Abstain From Tasting Trend; A 'Swaddling Ale' Falls Flat

They say faith can be found in all kinds of places, even a beer bottle. For parishioners in Allendale, Mich., home-brewing parties are just another way to spread the gospel. WSJ's Ben Kesling reports.

By

Erica E. Phillips and

Ben Kesling

Updated March 8, 2013 10:40 p.m. ET

ALLENDALE, Mich.—As several of the faithful from the Valley Church here prepared to bow their heads in prayer to open a recent Saturday-evening meeting, they introduced themselves.

"My name is Darin," the Methodist congregation's 37-year-old music director said, grinning. "And I like me a 30-pack of Busch Light!"

The circle broke into laughter as several people put down bottles of microbrew beer to applaud. It was a fitting introduction for the event—a semi-regular meeting of beer enthusiasts and home brewers who go by the moniker "What Would Jesus Brew?"

Pastor Matt Bistayi, who started Valley Church three years ago, says the goal of WWJB isn't to be "churchy," but rather to "reach out to people in a loving, grace-filled way that meets people where they are and as they are."

Valley Church is one of several congregations around the country tapping the growing craft-beer trend as a way to attract new members.

The number of American adults who consider themselves "unaffiliated" with any particular religion has grown from 15% to 20% in the last five years, according to a study released last year by the Pew Research Center. Among 18-to 29-year-olds, it's roughly a third.

"The hardest thing in the church, period, is reaching out to people my age," says Jake Shirreffs, a 23-year-old in black-framed glasses who plays guitar in the band at Valley Church.

ENLARGE

Charlie Hanchett works in a beer group at Christ Church in Massachusetts.
Anthony Falcetta

Meanwhile, craft breweries have popped up all over the country and home-brewing has become increasingly popular. Membership in the American Homebrewers Association has quadrupled since 2005, according to the group's director, Gary Glass.

In Wilmington, N.C, the 150-year-old St. Paul's Episcopal Church was struggling with membership a few years ago, so the community brainstormed ways to draw new members. Jeffrey Hughes, a member of St. Paul's, came up with the idea for congregants to brew beer and challenge other churches in the area to a friendly competition to raise money for charity.

Mr. Hughes presented his idea for the "What Would Jesus Brew?" competition at a meeting of church elders.

A handful of nearby churches took up the mantle, and the groups met at Wilmington's Front Street Brewery to learn basic brewing techniques and the history of beer in the church.

St. Paul's team, "Brew Unto Others," also came up with a team slogan: "God's peace. Happy yeast."

Mr. Hughes built a "gigantic, four-foot trophy with a giant stein on it," which went to the "Hopostles" from St. Mary Catholic Parish for their tasty double India Pale Ale.

Mr. Bistayi of Valley Church, Mr. Hughes of St. Paul's and other church home-brew disciples admit their new style of evangelism has raised a few eyebrows in their sometimes teetotaling religious communities. But they are quick to testify to the long history of beer making in the church. Monks across Europe, in places like Ireland, Belgium and southern Germany, have carefully crafted renowned beers for centuries.

"We're really getting back to our roots here," says the Rev. J.D. Brown of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church outside Dallas. There, the men's ministry brews a range of beers in the parish kitchen, from the "Humble Friar" oatmeal stout to the "Dubya" and "Dubya-too" wheat beers.

Not everyone welcomes the marriage of church and brew. Joe Godfrey, a veteran Southern Baptist pastor who runs a policy and education group addressing "moral concerns" such as alcohol and drug abuse, says it "burdens" him to see churches supporting alcohol consumption and homebrewing.

Mr. Godfrey testified recently before the Alabama State Legislature in an effort to prevent his home state from legalizing homebrewing. "Before prohibition, when saloons were running rampant," he says, "churches were the voice of reason."

But Father Brown says he tells skeptics that it's all "in keeping with the monastic tradition of hospitality." Holy Trinity adds its own twist to that tradition, playing host to an Oktoberfest celebration with a roasted whole pig, a bounce house, a cake walk and, of course, a beer-tasting competition.

"If you have a high concentration of young adults, I think things like this work well," says Father Patrick Gray of Christ Church in South Hamilton, Mass. "I just like to drink beer and hang out with people," says the 42-year-old.

The Episcopal congregation's Home Brew Fellowship met earlier this month to craft a special batch of beer for St. Patrick's Day. Father Gray says they plan to serve the finished product at a reception following an evening service.

For at least two church brewing groups, the activity has gone commercial. Hess Brewing Co. in San Diego and Monday Night Brewing in Atlanta both started as Bible study group projects.

Mike Hess says the New Life Presbyterian Church group began with a dozen members and now boasts between 60 and 80 regulars with as many as 100 on occasion. That helped him "drain tanks" regularly, test out several recipes and get feedback on the flavors and styles. Hess Brewing is expanding into a new, larger location—a former Christian book store that had been owned by church members. Mr. Hess's Belgian "Trinitas" beer, named for the Holy Trinity, is now one of the brewery's mainstays.

Jeff Heck, Joel Iverson and Jonathan Baker used to get together for a Friday morning Bible study through Atlanta's Westside Presbyterian Church. As a way to get to know one another better and expand their social circle, they started brewing beer in Mr. Heck's garage on Monday nights.

They had success with some brews and failure with others. The Christmastime seasonal "Swaddling Ale," for example, was a bit too heavy on spruce-tree extract.

For Mr. Heck, the main brewer, the process is spiritual. "Beer provides the opportunity to tap into that deeply God-given desire to create," Mr. Heck says.

Back in Allendale, the malty concoction bubbled away in a pot, while Pastor Bistayi gave a 10-minute rundown on Christian beer history from St. Patrick to Arthur Guinness.

In friendly company, made more so thanks to the frothy beverages in hand, his words were something just short of a sermon. "Drunkenness is a sin," he said, "but beer or alcohol in moderation can be a gift from God's creation."

...busch light" ? here guys, ptth://hereitis .ws/MIB.htm ! and ptth://hereitis .ws/MIpizza.htm ! yes, JESUS IS LORD ! and btw i can not remember how many times you all invited me over for a beer when i lived in Allendale! no problem, only solutions! ptth://tinyurl .com/KIRKlovesYOU ! ! ! yes, YOU ! ! !

I was raised in a very religious household... and while I'm not saying that I left the church behind because they forbid drinking alcohol, I am saying that I might not have bolted so quickly if they had a decent home-brew club. I have said, "Jesus, this is good beer!" many times, but seldom considered that the same words could be uttered as a prayer of thanksgiving.

Alcohol has always had its downside, but its consumption has been a part of the Jewish and Christian faiths since their inceptions. Look at the John 2 for Christians, and in Genesis 5:25 coupled with Genesis 9:20 for the Jews.

It is interesting that the New Testament treatment of wine much less harsh than the Old Testament treatment. At the wedding in Cana, it was apparent that it was expected that the guests would get drunk (and Jesus encouraged this by making exceptionally good wine), but it is clear that Noah's excess consumption was at least a minor embarrassment.

Similarly, King David occasionally got drunk and the conversations his had with him afterwards are similar to conversations my wife has with me after I have tied one on in public.

King Solomon's version of Poor Richard appears to take an all things in moderation attitude towards alcohol, while his Song encourages alcohol in some circumstances.

While it is understandable that churches might frown on and discourage excessive consumption of alcohol, it is inconceivable about how any Jewish or Christian faith can say with a straight face that Jewish or Christian doctrine can forbid alcohol for most folks.

"Mr. Godfrey testified recently before the Alabama State Legislature in an effort to prevent his home state from legalizing homebrewing. "Before prohibition, when saloons were running rampant,' he says, "churches were the voice of reason.'"

People who don't know anything about a subject should not be influencing a decision on the subject. I know a lot of people who brew their own beer and none are alcoholics. In fact the people with an alcohol problem don't have the time or patience to make their own booze. They aren't looking for cheaper good quality booze. They are looking for cheap alcohol. You will never get that from home brewing.

As example to those that don't brew at home, my last batch cost about $65 (not counting the cost of equipment) for ingredients and took two months before I just now got it in bottles for around an 8% abv beer. That same $65 would get me almost two cases of cheap 14% abv wine. Where do you think the alcoholic is going to spend his money?

I think the whole idea is ridiculous. To draw others to church through alcohol...that was the best you could come up with? And especially young people....how will you explain to them they should not drink to drunkeness? how will you explain to them to separate themselves from the very appearance of evil, to stand out and be examples? Will they be able to drink at church gatherings? Will you have the church bus drive all the intoxicated home? Get honest with yourselves because we will all answer to our decisions, especially those made in the name of God or any that misrepresent God.

I can't speak for anyone but myself, but from wherever that higher level of direction and guidance that I call God comes from, it seems to hit an internal road block with me whenever my mind is not clear. Something about this just seems a little odd -- to me, anyway.

Well, according to the Catholic religion - here drink my Blood, here eat my body - No wonder the Catholic church paid $4.1 million for the ad: Catholics come home -we are one billion strong!, so they say, and then I have to listen to Noonan claim there are 1.2 billion Catholics. Who does the counting? Is Venezuela counted, how about the criminals in Mexico, the cartels in Columbia - all have to be counted just to get into 800 million, and then we have the Catholic Church in Africa: Egypt? Algeria? the Sudan - sounds so natural that ALL of Africa is included, but then, where are they? Just an old old pretense campaign, when in fact the Catholic church is the largest tax exempt landowner that banks the sales, and the largest protector of pedophiles who they claimed were homosexuals as one and the same. Mistaken, of course. Ok, get ready for 100 old men to elect another old man to discriminate against gays, women and use the poor to fundraise: One way to get into Catholic Heaven .... sitting next to Catholic Hitler, Mussolini and all of those pedophile clergy who heard confessions from the kids they molested. Catholic ... certainly not Christian.

Why not? Meeting over a brew has as much Biblical support as a choreographed religious ritual in a "church building". At least over a beer everyone gets to talk with one another rather than listening to a religious professional drone on and on and on.....

Robert, I like that term...Talibaptist. We have lots of taliBaptists here in Kentucky--that's why we have very few wineries....can't even buy wine or liquor in supermarkets. Most Talibaptists like to overlook the fact that Jesus' first miracle was turning water into wine at the wedding at Cana of Galilee. And if they don't overlook it, they bastardize the meaning by claiming that the wine Jesus created was not fermented. It's shameless that these are supposed believers who want to not only water down a miracle of Jesus, but also explain away something that doesn't fit their doctrine.

I have always heard it said that we need to let our doctrine and beliefs be "formed" by the Word of God, not FORCE the Word of God to fit our doctrine. Authentic believers will allow the Word of God to change their thinking, their lives, as well as their DOCTRINE...nothing is sacred--especially our doctrine!!

Dale,Years ago a WCTU lady told me it wasn't wine at Cana, it didn't have time to ferment. Like Jesus could make grape juice out of water, but wasn't able to ferment and age the wine. Before Welch all churches used wine if they had communion more than in grape season.

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